Dell Woes, Part Two

I am a big believer in virtual karma, so when I blogged previously about my friend Diva's issues with her Dell computer, I should have figured that it would come back around. And it did. This week, I went through yet another power cord on my year old Dell Computer. Now, I'll preface this by saying that in general, I have been happy with the purchase of my Dell laptop. Other than an inexplicable noise that emits from the CD drive (I call it "virtual flatulence"), it performs well and has provided little to no software issues. It is, however, a power whore. In a year of owning this laptop, I have gone through ONE battery, and TWO power cords. In a YEAR!
My most recent call to customer service was pleasant, although I have a few pointers for the congenial yet misguided phone representative. The first: please don't overuse my name. Calling me "Miss Kat" in every sentence is distracting, and reminds me of that fourth grade saying, "that's my name, don't wear it out". Two: Yes, I know my warranty is up. Thanks for checking, but a reminder that I should have purchased the extended plan is probably not the most appropriate when I'm about to shell out extra dough. Three: When I am peeved about going through yet ANOTHER power cord in a year period (which seems to be one too many, is it not?), it's not really the best time to try and upgrade/sell me on a new computer. I know it's probably your job, but why don't we work on getting this one to perform correctly for a bit, shall we? Lastly, when you said you would "overnight" the new power cord, I didn't really expect next day delivery. But, um, a week? I hope that I was not charged extra for this "overnight" delivery, because that is going to result in an unpleasant phone call we really both want to avoid (PS - I took your name, Dell Phone Agent! And I'm not afraid to use it).
Wish me luck, readers! And if that power cord doesn't come by tomorrow, pray for the unsuspecting phone representative who gets my return call...
Update: Power cord arrived today. *sighs of relief* for all.

Dirty Tricks

Greetings gentle readers,
It's been an eventful week in Customer Service Land, with Queen Kat's Krafty Kustomer's attempting to pull out their best "dirty tricks". Dirty Tricks can be defined as those actions customers take to attempt to REALLY piss you off when they don't like your answer or service. Case in point: I was holding a customer accountable for a $30 bill recently. After several painful and long conversations, the customer reluctantly agreed to pay, but decided to do so as annoyingly as possible. So, they entered my establishment, and presented me with a jar of pennies - $30 worth. Now, this could have pissed me off, but I decided I would play along with the customer, since he had initiated the game. I accepted the jar of pennies, and proceeded to count them, very, very slowly, in front of the customer prior to issuing a receipt. Oh - and did I mention I got distracted on a few occasions and had to start over? Pity.
One reader wrote in with a story about how a parent entered her store with her two whiny, foul-mouthed, and general ill-behaved children. After several minutes of harassing other customers, the older child stuffed a toilet with toilet paper and rolls, resulting in a $500 plumbing bill for the shop owner. The kicker? The oblivious parent called to demand a $.10 refund for having been "overcharged" at the establishment. The shop keeper's smart response? To tape her $.10 to the plumbing bill, in the event that she ever came to collect her "debt".
The lesson here? Dirty Tricks don't work. They really just give those of us in the 'Biz fodder for great stories, and well, blog posts. They provide us with amusement, and frankly, give us a reason to laugh. On second thought, keep the dirty tricks coming! *Winks*.